Rodless deep-well pump



April 7, 1925.

- 1,532,231 w. G. COREY ET AL RODLESS DEEP WELL PUMP Filed Nov. 26, 1923I 37 I; A Jim H 91 J \i r a [i M 4 n 1; i; Z0 I 21 INVENTORS 47172;, amI 7am; g g/@ 15? I .41, CKW BY My ATTORNEYYS" PatentedApr. 7 1925.

a trans WILLIAM G. COREY, 0F BERKELEY, AND REMI G. KNIGHT AND LOVE F.GION,

0F OAKLAIND, CALIFORW" nonnnss nnnr-vrnnn PUMP. 1

Application filed November 26, 1923. Serial No. 676,973.

The object of our invention is to do away with the sucker rods or othermovable mechanical connection between the pump plunger in the well andthe power mechanism at thesurface of the ground, thereby eliminating thefriction and wear and loss of stroke from stretch which results from theuse of such mechanical connections. In deep wells, particularly, thefriction of the sucker rods, and the necessity for frequent repair andreplacement, add very materially to the cost of operating the well. Thesucker rod also adds to the time and labor required to pull the pump forcleaning or repair.

We achieve this object, in our present invention, b transmitting thepower from the 7 surface 0 the ground to the pump atthe bottom of thewell by means of columns of fluid, the fluid being supplied from thewell itself by the operation of the pump. Two columns of fluid areemployed, forming in effect a closed circuit, in'which the fluid iscaused to oscillate by a succession of alternating impulses set up bysuitable power meansat the surface, and this oscillation of the fluid isemployed to operate the pump at the bottomof the well. Moreover, in thepreferred form of our invention hereinafter described we employ the samecolumns of fluid, both for transmitting power to the pump, and forconveying the pumped well fluid from the pump to the surface, so thatonly two conduits leading from the pump to the surface are necessary.These may take the form of two strings of tubin within the well, or, ifdesired, the well caslng suitably packed off at the pump, may beemployed in place of one tubing string.

It is our intention, in the following specification, to describe ourinvention in its simplest form, with the understanding that any suitableor desirable mechanical construction may be followed 'in carrying outthe principles of the said lnvention as set forth in the claims heretoappended.

zWith this in View our invention will now I be fully described withreference to the accompanying drawing, in which the figure. represents,in partly diagrammatic form, a part-sectional elevation of a simple formof apparatus embodying the principles of our inventlon.

In the drawing, the reference numeral 1 designates the pump barrel,located at or near the bottom of the well. Said barrel has closed heads2 and 3, and an intervening transversepartition or head 4 dividing itinto upper and lower working cylinders 5 and 6 respectively. Pistons 7and 8, operating respectively within the cylinders 5 and 6, areconnected by a hollow stem 9 which passes through the intervening head4, suit able packlng, not shown, being provided at this point to preventleakage past said head 4.

The connecting stem 9 is provided with ,two ducts 10 and 11, the duct 10being shown,

to a check valve 14 in the lower piston 8 leading into the lowercylinder 6 below said piston 8. The duct 11 connects the u per portion15 of said lower cylinder 6, y means of a port 16 in the stem 9, withthe u per cylinder 5 above the upper piston 7, a c eck valve 17 beingcarried in said upper piston 7. Inlet valves 18 and 19 are providedrespectively for the lower portion 13 of the upper cylinder 5 and theuper ortion 15 of the lower cylinder 6, sai va ves being positioned in theside walls of said cylinders near the intervening head 4. 1

Conduits or pipes 20 and 21 lead from apertures 22 and 23 in the endheads 2 and 3 of the respective cylinders 5 and 6. Said pipes 20 and 21are carried up through the well to the surface of the ground, and areconnected'by branches 24 and 25 with res'pective power pump cylinders 26and 27. Pistons 28 and 29 operating in said power cylinders 26 and 2 areimpelled by a crank rare are provided respectively with valves 31 and32, opened by cams 33 and 34 mounted on the shaft 30, and closed bysprings and 36, both said valves communicating with a common dischargepipe 37.

The operation is as follows: Assumin r that the entire system is filledwith the wel fluid, and that the surface pump or power piston 29 ismoved downwardly by means of power applied to the shaft 30, thedischarge valve 32 will be held closed by its spring 36 during thisportion of the movement of said shaft 30, so that the fluid expelledfrom the power cylinder 27 passes through the pipes 25 and 21 into thelower working cylinder 6 of the-pu1np barrel 1, forcing the pistons 8and 7 and their connecting stem 9 upwardl the lower check valve 14 beingclosed by the pressure of the fluid in said cylinder 6. The upwardmovement of the upper piston 7 forces fluid out of the upper workingcylinder 5 and up through the pipe 20, and the branch 24 into the powercylinder 26, whose piston 28 is being moved upwardly by the crank shaft30. At the same time, the fluid within the upper or pumping portion 15of the lower working cylinder 6 is forced out, by the piston 8, throughthe port 16, and the connecting duct 11, into the'upper working cylinder5, and this additional fluid also passes up through the pipe 20. The discharge valve 31 being held open by its cam 33, this additional fluidpasses out through said valve'to the discharge pipe 37. During thisstroke, also, fresh fluid is drawn from the well into the lower orpumping portion 13 of the upper working cylinder 5 through the checkvalve 18 by the upward movement of the piston 7.

During the other half of the revolution of the crank shaft 30, the valve31 is held closed by its spring 35 and the valve 32 is held open by itscam 3 1. Fluid is there fore forced from the power cylinder26 downthrough the pipes 24 and 20, into the upper working cylinder 5, therebymoving the pistons 7 and 8 downwardly, and forcing the fluid from thelower working cylinder 6 back through the pipes 21 and 25 into the powercylinder 27. Additional fluid is also forced from the lower or pumpingportion 13 of the upper working cylinder 5 through the port 12 and theduct 10 into the lower working cylinder 6, and thence up throu h thepipe 21 and through the open discharge valve 32 into the discharge pipe37. At the same time, fresh fluid is drawn from the well into the upperor pumping portion 15 of the lower working cylinder 6 through the inletvalve 19.

Thus it will be seen that the reciprocating movement of the working andpump-- ing pistons .7 and 8 is caused solely by the alternating impulsesof the columns of fluid within the pipes 20 and 21, said impulses beingset up by the action of the pistons 28 and 29 n the power cylinders 26and 27. At each stroke or im ulse, however, an additional quantity offluid is added to the upwardly moving fluid column from the pumpingcylinder 13 or 15, as the case may be, and this additional fluid, whichcauses an increase in the velocity of the upwardly moving column, passesout through the open discharge valve 31 or 32 into the discharge pipe37. The fluid issuing into said discharge pipe 37, therefore, is onlyequal to the displacement of the pistons 7 and 8 within their respectivepumping cylinders 13 and 15, and the power necessary to raise this fluidto the surface is transmitted from the power cylinders 26 and 27 to theworking cylinders 5 and 6'by the fluid columns in the pipes 20 and 21.By thus combining the pumped fluid with the power fluid in the upwardlymoving column, any leakage of the power fluid is automaticallycompensated byan equivalent quantity of the pumped fluid. This methodalso simplifies the construction of the apparatus, and does away withthe necessity for a separate pipe or conduit for the pumped fluid fromthe pump to the surface.

We claim:

1. A pumping apparatus comprising a barrel having a-working cylinder andapumping cylinder axially aligned therewith, said pumping cylinderhavlng a fluid inlet; a piston operable in each cylinder; a connectingstem between said pistons, having a fluid passage from said pumping clinder to said working cylinder; means or supplying fluid underfluctuating presssure to said working cylinder to reciprocate saidpistons, the fluid pumped from said pumping cylinder flowing throughsaid passage and being added to the working fluid; and means forseparatin from said working fluid an amount of flu1d equal to the pumpedfluid added thereto.

2. A pumping apparatus comprising a working barrel; a transverse partiton therein dividing it into two cylinders; a piston operable in eachcylinder, each piston having a working face and a pumping face; aconnecting stem between said pistons, said stem having fluid passagesconnecting the pumping face of each piston with the working face of theother; means for admitting the fluid to be pumped to the pumping face ofeach piston; means for supplying fluid under pressure alternately to theworking faces of said pistons to cause the reciprocation thereof, thepumped fluid flowing through said connecting passages and being added tothe working fluid, and means for conducting the combined fluids awayfrom said barrel.

3. {\pumping apparatus comprising a worklng barrel; a transversepartition therein dividing it into two cylinders; a piston operable ineach cylinder, each piston having a working face and a pumping face; a

longitudinally divided hollow stem connecting said pistons and passingslidably throu h said partition, said stem having two uid passagesrespectively connecting the working face of each piston with the pumpingface of the other; oppositely disposed check valves respectivelycontrolling said passages; means for supplying fluid underpressurealternately to the working faces of said pistons to cause thereciprocation thereof, the pumped fluid flowing through the passages ofsaid stem and being added to the working fluid; and means for con-%uctirlig the combined fluids away from said arre 4. A pumping apparatuscomprising a barrel having a working cylinder and a pumping cylinderaxially aligned therewith, said pumping cylinder havlng. a fluid inlet;a piston operable in each cylinder; a connectin stem between saidpistons having a flui passage from said pumping cylinder to said workingcylinder; means for supplying fluid under fluctuating pressure to saidworking cylinder to reciprocate said pistons, the fluid pumped from saidpumping cylinder flowing through said passage and being added to theworkin fluid; and means for conducting the com ined fluids away fromsaid working cylinder.

In testimony whereof we have signed our names to this specification.

WILLIAM G. COREY. REMI C. KNIGHT. LOUIS F. CHAMPION.

